Sydney surged to the top of the AFL ladder and demonstrated its flag credentials with a 52-point victory over West Coast at Subiaco Oval on Sunday night.

The win breaks the Eagles' 18-match home winning streak and the comfortable 18.13 (121) to 10.9 (69) margin puts the Swans ahead of Adelaide and Collingwood thanks to their superior percentages.

The Swans dominated the midfield area, with 76 more handballs in the midfield as Daniel Hannebery (42) and Ryan O'Keefe (39) led the game's disposal count, with Kieran Jack, Jarad McVeigh and Josh Kennedy also passing the 25-mark.

Opposition midfielder Scott Selwood admitted the Swans have set a benchmark for the Eagles to emulate.

"They're just a great running side, they're very experienced, they haven't got many players out at the moment and hopefully we see them in September," Selwood told Grandstand.

"Their metres gained from stoppages is what killed us. Their spread and run was first class.

"Their communication as a team, everyone's on the same page, that's something we can take out of the game."

This is the second time the Swans, famous for their struggles to win at the MCG, have quelled a winning record after it ended stopped Geelong's consecutive successes at Kardinia Park at 29.

After taking a 20-point lead midway through the first stanza the Eagles, whose injuries and suspensions in the forward line seem to have caught up with them, could not find a way past the tenacious defence of the Swans.

West Coast's forward woes were exacerbated when Jack Darling was subbed out in the third quarter due to a hamstring complaint.

Selwood admitted the absentees made the Swans harder to stop.

"We had to play a couple of blokes out of positions and that probably killed us a little bit," he said.

"Will Schofield had to play a role he hasn't really played and he competed but there's nothing like a proper forward who knows the leading patterns of the other boys."

Matthew Priddis worked hard as the Swans ran rampant in the second half, ending the game with 14 tackles, but for Sydney Jack was also a stand-out in this area with 11.

In the ruck Shane Mumford and Mike Pyke more than stood up against the feared Eagles' pairing of Dean Cox and Nic Naitaniui.

And in attack, despite a relatively quiet day from Adam Goodes, the Swans showed they have the firepower to hurt anyone with Lewis Jetta (four goals) and Sam Reid (three each) both seemingly coming of age.

Veteran Ted Richards said it was pleasing to see Jetta take the step up this season.

"The confidence he's having within himself, he's now willing to take people on," Richards said.

"He's backing his pace and he's confident to have shots on the run. He's got some real assets he's using."

Jude Bolton also chipped in with three goals, two in the last quarter, as the Swans cruised to their sixth straight win against the Eagles.

It was not all good news for Sydney, with utility Lewis Roberts-Thomson taken to hospital after copping a hard but fair bump to the head from Eagles defender Jacob Brennan.

Roberts-Thomson fractured his cheekbone earlier in the season, and may require a stint on the sidelines given the latest hit to the head was the third of the year.